GE Capital stalwart Duncan Berry will take the reins as chief executive of Australia and New Zealand in April, as Steve Sargent steps back from the unit but retains the role of local head of GE.

Mr Sargent, who also sits on the board of the Business Council of Australia, held both the GE and GE Capital roles in the past 12 months.

That followed the appointment of former GE Capital Australia boss Skander Malcolm to lead GE Healthcare’s 84-country Eastern and Africa Growth Markets region.

Mr Berry, will be based in Melbourne, and report to Richard Laxer, chief executive of GE Capital International, according to a memo seen by The Australian Financial Review.

GE Capital is the finance arm of the conglomerate.

A local spokeswoman confirmed the appointment, noting that Mr Berry joined from GE Capital in the Americas where he was chief operations officer. He joined GE in 1996 and his roles included a stint as head of home lending in the United Kingdom.

The spokeswoman would not, however, comment on the reporting lines or succession plans at GE or GE Capital.

Mr Sargent joined GE Capital in 1993 in New York and has held several senior roles with the company.

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He returned to Sydney in 2003 and five years later was the first Australian to be appointed vice-president and officer of the parent General Electric Company.

Mr Berry’s appointment follows hefty global debate about GE’s prospects in financial services. Last year, GE said it would file for an initial public offering for a 20 per cent stake in its North American retail finance ­operations. The company may in 2015 distribute the remaining stake to shareholders or look to a trade sale.

“GE Capital continued to execute on its strategy of becoming a smaller, more focused financial services business," the company said in a statement with its fourth-quarter earnings.

Speculation in Australian is centring on whether GE Capital will retain operations, including its commercial credit card partnerships with supermarket giant Coles and department store Myer.

Also locally, the corporate regulator has GE Capital firmly in its sights.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has kicked off federal court action against GE Capital, also known as GE Money, for alleged misleading and deceptive conduct. ASIC is seeking penalties after claiming GE Capital made false representations to customers seeking to activate credit cards or obtain limit increases.

A directions hearing is slated for March 20.

GE Capital’s global earnings rose 38 per cent in the three months ended December 31, compared to the same period a year earlier, But the unit’s overall revenues declined 5per cent.